


Something Better

by okemmelie



Category: The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals - Team StarKid
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-31
Updated: 2019-12-31
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:34:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,133
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22048702
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/okemmelie/pseuds/okemmelie
Summary: Charlotte wants to believe in signs from the universe, but they're not telling her what she wants to hear
Relationships: Charlotte/Sam (The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals), Charlotte/Ted (The Guy Who Didn't Like Musicals)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 30





	Something Better

**Author's Note:**

> inspired by the fact that our christmas had two candle-relate fires, meat forgotten and burnt in the grill, glasses falling over, glasses breaking and so much more. this will (hopefully) be my last thing posted in 2019 so skldfjsd happy new year !!!!

It’s December and the year is nearing its end. 2019 has been a rough year for her and Sam, but she’s sure things will get better. They have to be. She’s sure they will be. She just needs to make sure Christmas goes over well.

She used to believe in signs, but then Sam’s present didn’t arrive on time. And then she thought _oh well, that was unfortunate_ , because it was, but she was sure that that was just one bad thing and that the good signs would catch up to her. It was just trying to trick her.

But turns out, she really was wrong on that whole signs thing. Signs were silly things for silly little girls and Charlotte was a grown woman. When she forgot the turkey in the oven and it got burnt, that wasn’t a bad sign. That was just her being forgetful. It was Christmas, after all. It was so easy to forget _something_.

Charlotte makes her way into the living room where Sam is sitting. He has the evening off and thank God for that. They’re just doing Christmas alone and at home, just them, but now the turkey is inedible and his gift still hasn’t arrived. “Oh. Sam, baby, I’m so sorry, but the turkey–”

He cuts her off. “What about it?”

“It’s the turkey, Sam.”

They go into the kitchen together and maybe they shouldn’t have, because Sam yells at her and she doesn’t like it, but she understands. She’s ruined Christmas and he should yell at her and maybe it is a sign. A sign that she can do better. Should do better. She will do better.

So they decide to go meatless that Christmas. An entire turkey is far too much for them anyway and sure, they could have frozen down the leftovers like they had planned, but maybe it’s a sign that they shouldn’t. That they should just enjoy what they have.

But then she remembers that oh yeah, signs aren’t real. Because Sam knocks over their pitcher of water and gets water all over their salad and the table, and then Charlotte drops his expensive red wine glass.

And of course that’s all very unfortunate, but it’s not a sign because yes, Sam yells at her and yes, it makes her feel horrible in the moment, but Sam also wakes her up the next morning and he apologizes and he says he loves her and she says she loves him too. They’re in love and they’ll work through their issues and 2020 will be better, she’s sure of it.

Sam and Charlotte have always been together on New Years. It’s been a tradition, with them originally getting together in December and all. However, this year Sam’s been invited to a party with some friends and he hasn’t invited Charlotte, so she’s all alone on New Year’s Eve and it sucks, but she doesn’t know what to do about it.

She puts on a jacket and she goes for a walk. Being in the apartment feels like much too much for her, because she’s alone and because there’s stains from spilled red wine still left on the wall and because Sam’s left her alone on New Year’s Eve of all eves.

Hatchetfield is pretty quiet. It’s not nearly close enough to midnight for people to be out and about. She isn’t sure where she’s walking, but on the way to nowhere in particular, she sees something shining on the ground and she goes to pick it up.

It’s a penny on the sidewalk outside Oakley Park. Nothing special, really, but it’s a lucky find. Perhaps a sign. No. Not a sign. Signs are silly, she reminds herself. And on top of that, they’re not real. She walks into the park anyway.

She doesn’t go to Oakley Park very often and it’s way too quiet there for her liking, but it’s still less quiet than at home and at least it’s pretty. She goes to lay down in the grass and look up at the stars.

All things considered, she’s happy to be living in Hatchetfield. Sure, she’s always wished for a bigger city, but Sam likes it here and so she does to. And bigger cities don’t have visible stars. Hatchetfield does.

Now, Charlotte isn’t superstitious and she doesn’t believe in silly stuff like signs or days having certain meanings or… anything like that, not at all. But she does, however, appreciate seeing a shooting star. She considers not wishing on it, but it’s already too late, because the heart knows what it wants and sometimes what it wants is to not be so alone, especially not on New Year’s Eve.

“Charlotte?”

She knows that voice. Could it be…?

Turns out, yes. It could. Ted is usually pretty tall, but he’s even taller towering over her while she’s on the ground. “Ted! What are you doing here?”

She can see him raise an eyebrow at her from down on the ground. “I was just going for a walk. Paul’s not very good at partying, but I don’t know what I expected.” Ted’s not standing up anymore. Instead, he’s right next to her on the ground. “What about you? I thought you were spending New Year’s Eve with the cop?”

“Sam, my _husband_ Sam, he is just spending this one New Year with some friends from work and–”

Ted interrupts her. “And he didn’t–” Then, Ted interrupts himself. “Sorry, you weren’t finished. Go on.”

“He’s spending this New Year with some friends and, well, I’m spending my New Year here.” Now that she was thinking about it, it kind of didn’t make sense why she hadn’t been invited. They’d been married for fourteen years, why hadn’t he? “But, you know, it’s just a work thing and it’s for the boys and… yeah.”

Something touches her hand. She looks down to find out that that something is Ted. It makes her smile. “Well, that sounds stupid. He should have invited you.” She doesn’t say anything so he continues. “Or you should at least have let me know beforehand. I could have hooked you up with an invitation to Paul’s party.”

She shrugs. “I don’t know. It doesn’t really matter.”

“I suppose it doesn’t.”

Maybe nothing really matters, Charlotte concludes to herself as she’s laying there in the cold grass next to Ted. Maybe it’s fine that Sam isn’t here, she thinks as she cuddles up to Ted.

But then she kisses Ted and Ted kisses her back and she hears fireworks go off above them and she can’t help but think that maybe signs _are_ real and maybe this matters. Because Sam isn’t here, but Ted is and he is kissing her into the new year and that’s gotta count for something, right?


End file.
